Melting in Guatemala

My new area is in the hottest part of the mission, and I believe that it is in the hottest part of the world. I am in Tiquisate, in a little town called RIO BRAVO. It is HOT here..... It makes the rest of the places I have been seem like vacationing spots. We did our weekly planning last Thursday, and at about 1:30pm I went to go wash my face off to try and get rid of some of the heat. The water that came out of the sink was so hot I almost couldn`t take it. I figured that it was probably just the water in the pipes and let it run a bit. Nothing. The whole several hundred gallon tank of water on the roof was the temperature of a really hot shower.... Yeah... It’s hot here.... Look it up and let me know how hot it is. I will probably die of the cold, depressing weather back home after living in a country that pretty much only has summer and rainy summer seasons.

The area we are in is REALLY big, and the local branch of the church is really small. When church started there were only 20 people in the building, counting little kids and babies... All of the roads are really long, and really flat. And did I mention it’s really hot? The only escape from the heat is a cold shower, and only in the morning, as in the afternoon the water is all hot. The good thing is-this place is awesome!

My kid (the new missionary I’m training) and I are going crazy here teaching people. Instead of just walking really fast, sometimes we jog between visits to save time. And we always wake up pretty early to get out earlier. Elder Lemus, my new companion, is great. He is socially apt, which helps a lot when we are talking with random people in the street or on the bus, willing to work hard, and he worked as a school teacher before he came on the mission, so he is-well, a good teacher of the gospel! All in all- all is well.

They also made me a district leader, which means I am in charge of the district, which is made up of 6 missionaries. Wow! It is A LOT of work.

 Your trip to the beach sounded fun- especially the food !  I totally miss buffets-and good old American food. One can only eat so much beans and rice and corn tortillas.

 Anyways, running out of time fast, more details next time.

VA PUESSSSSSSSSS!!! Elder Rice

(In Tiquisate one must yell loud, and stretch out the words in order to inspire others J)